The New England Patriots have refuted a series of allegations made in a report by ESPN.
The media outlet released a report making several claims against the Super Bowl champion revolving around the spygate scandal in 2007.
ESPN alleged that the Patriots sent employees into the locker rooms of opposing teams ahead of their matches at Gillette Stadium to steal playsheets, while it also suggests that a member of the Carolina Panthers was convinced that they taped their practices ahead of Super Bowl XXXVIII.
The statement said: "The New England Patriots have never filmed or recorded another team's practice or walkthrough. The first time we ever heard of such an accusation came in 2008, the day before Super Bowl XLII, when the Boston Herald reported an allegation from a disgruntled former employee.
"Clearly, the damage has been irreparable. As recently as last month, over seven years after the retraction and apology was issued, ESPN issued the following apology to the Patriots for continuing to perpetuate the myth: 'On two occasions in recent weeks, SportsCenter incorrectly cited a 2002 report regarding the New England Patriots and Super Bowl XXXVI. That story was found to be false, and should not have been part of our reporting. We apologise to the Patriots organisation.'
"This type of reporting over the past seven years has led to additional unfounded, unwarranted and, quite frankly, unbelievable allegations by former players, coaches and executives. None of which have ever been substantiated, but many of which continue to be propagated.
"The New England Patriots are led by an owner whose well-documented efforts on league-wide initiatives – from TV contracts to preventing a work stoppage – have earned him the reputation as one of the best in the NFL. For the past 16 years, the Patriots have been led by one of the league's all-time greatest coaches and one of its all-time greatest quarterbacks.
"It is disappointing that some choose to believe in myths, conjecture and rumours rather than giving credit for the team's successes to Coach Belichick, his staff and the players for their hard work, attention to detail, methodical weekly preparation, diligence and overall performance."
The Patriots have been docked two first-round Draft picks and fined $1.75m (£1.13m) for the spygate and deflategate scandals.
Simon Sinclair
